Spiced Pumpkin Soup
This pumpkin soup almost didn’t make it to the blog. That’s not to say it isn’t delicious (it is), but it’s just so simple anyone could do it. Still, it tasted so good I just had to share it.
I’ve had a couple of small pumpkins sitting in the conservatory for a month or so now. They arrived in my weekly vegetable box and while I love pumpkin, I just hadn’t got around to doing anything with them. Still, the great thing about pumpkin is that it will last for months after picking before it starts to go bad.
Pumpkin is delicious but has a mild taste that compliments spices really well. As a result I’ve combined quite a few into here; feel free to play around based on what you’ve got in the cupboard. I used a little honey to balance the flavour – a trick which always works with squash based soups – and then finished with a drizzle of white truffle oil (if you don’t have this final ingredient, don’t worry – it’s perfect without); this latter addition purely because I received some as a Christmas present.
Recipe: Spiced Pumpkin Soup with Truffle Oil
Summary: This pumpkin soup is perfect when coming in from the cold on a winter’s day and is full of seasonal flavour.
Ingredients
- 1 Medium Pumpkin, peeled & diced.
- 1 Onion
- 1 Large Carrot
- 1 Stick Celery
- 1.5 Litres Chicken Stock
- 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 1 tsp Ground Coriander
- 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1/2 tsp Ground Cumin
- 1/2 tsp Ground Turmeric
Method
- Start by dicing the vegetables and placing in a large pan with a little olive oil over a low heat, stirring occasionally.
- After about 5 minutes add the spices and stir well. Continue frying for approximately 10 minutes until the onion softens.
- Add the chicken stock and bring to the boil, before reducing the heat to a simmer.
- Add your diced pumpkin and continue cooking until soft; this is approximately 20 minutes or so, but a bit longer certainly won’t hurt.
- Remove from the heat and add a couple of tbsp of runny honey. Purée the soup with a stick blender if you have one, or a food processor.
- Taste, and season as appropriate with salt and pepper. If the soup is too thick, add some water and stir in well, to achieve the right consistency.
Preparation time: 5 minute(s)
Cooking time: 45 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 12
